Throughout the Bruins-Lightning Eastern Conference Final, TheBruinsBlog.net will collaborate on Q&A features before every game with Jon Jordan 0f Beasts of the Southeast over at Kukla’s Korner.

Here’s the latest installment, where I respond to questions about the Bruins’ Game 3 victory and more.

JJ: In an effort to provide a little levity for my Lightning fan friends out there, well kick things off in lighthearted fashion here today, so as not to overwhelm the masses.

Apparently, the off-ice officials are not as impressed with Tyler Seguin as the rest of the free world. Clearly, he scored Boston’s second goal last night with his mind and yet, here we are, looking at the final score sheet, where they’ve changed it to correctly reflect Andrew Ference as the goal-scorer.

Haters? Or might Seguin have his very own Lex Luthor residing right here in Tampa (or, perhaps, up there in the Toronto war room)?

MK: Everything is Seguin. He’s so fast that the back wind from him skating toward the net blew the puck in through Dwayne Roloson’s 5-hole. Or maybe it was the shock that overcame Roloson at the sight of Seguin going to the net that made the puck trickle in. Regardless, there’s obviously an anti-Seguin population out there that controls the war room and the final stats sheet. There are plenty of people in Boston today that probably think Seguin not only scored that goal but the one credited to David Krejci as well.

Regardless, isn’t it amazing the Bruins were able to win without getting a single point from their teenaged superstar? Wow, that Patrice Bergeron guy looked pretty good. Maybe the team should sign him to a long-term deal oh yeah, they did already. Zdeno Chara and Tim Thomas, though, are obviously too old and untested to lead a suffocating defense. Oh wait, that was them out there, huh? I guess there’s more to this team than Seguin. But if all the talk about the rookie did anything to distract the Lightning from their task of stopping everyone else, shame on them.

Just having a little fun is all. Seguin’s game two performance was outstanding and no one – least of all some snooty writer shmuck like myself – can take any of that away from him, nor was I trying to.

When Stamkos started to emerge in the second half of his rookie season (sparked by a hat trick against Chicago), fan excitement was still somewhat tempered. But remember, that was during a horrible, circus-like season (the first of two), so folks around here were careful not to get too awfully excited about anything.

Putting up 51 a year ago – and his follow-up this year – has the kid on a pedestal locally, for sure, and rightfully so.

My comments have been akin to my hand on Seguin’s shoulder keeping him firmly seated in the box, but it is true – He saved game 2, and in many’s opinion, the remainder of this journey toward Lord Stanley.

He’s not elite – no one is saying he’s elite. People are saying

“Holy Crap, did you see that?! – Damn, that little dude is actually playing big-boy hockey, and might actually become exactly what folks said he might become”.

He was a number 2 pick that struggled, sat for all the playoff games up to Tampa 1 and 2, and would have sat until next year unless an injury occurred to the Bs, best forward, possibly best player, and very possibly its unsung captain. Jesus Guys, its straight out of Hollywood for crying out loud. Why should fans have fun with it and… you know.. be fans?!

Seguin Nation? I’ll admit there are some Seguin homers around here, but most of us are simply giving the kid props for what he has done in the playoffs. We would not have won game two without him, and he played pretty damn well in games one and three. Although he didn’t live up to his regular season expectations on the score sheet, he has been nothing but professional in handling his benching and every other situation he has found himself in.

I agree wholeheartedly with how Claude handled him during the regular season. Except for about a three week period where he was a force on the ice (stripping pucks, forechecking, making nice passes) he didn’t deserve to get more ice time and he sure as hell didn’t look ready to be in the NHL.

I realize the ‘Seguinistas,’ as they have been termed, can be annoying. I just don’t understand ripping on Seguin for what fans and media have been saying. He hasn’t come out and said “I deserved more playing time during the season.”

Can you really blame Bruins fans for getting so excited over Seguin? Before the Tampa series a lot of people had started to write him off. He didn’t produce during the regular season and was put on the back burner by the Bruins coaching staff (for good reason). Look at how quickly that has turned around. 6 points in three playoff games, and the result of that is Bruins fans are excited about their number two draft pick again. When is the last time we had a prospect with his skill? Joe Thornton? Weren’t Tampa fans hopping on the Stamkos bandwagon when he started to play well his rookie year, Jon?

Talk about a waste of time, guys. If you’re going to spew this nonsense ad nauseam, the least you could do is make the content funny. The kid did a good job of committing to breakouts last night, and he showed decent puck support in the offensive zone. I was expecting a significant let down with all the pressure heaped on him, but he didn’t hurt us at all. Frankly, if he doesn’t score again in the playoffs I’ll still be proud of the kid; Game 2 was a must win all the way, and he certainly delivered the goods.